George Harrison's 'terrified' widow hits back at actor

Olivia Harrison, the wife of the late Beatle George Harrison, says the actor Rodney Bewes has left her vulnerable to attack.

Olivia Harrison, the wife of the late Beatle George HarrisonPhoto: GETTY IMAGES

By Richard Eden

6:28AM BST 11 Jul 2010

Since she was accused by neighbours of turning her corner of Oxfordshire into a "prison camp", Olivia Harrison has maintained a dignified silence.

The 62-year-old widow of George Harrison has, however, now spoken out to accuse the most prominent protestor, Rodney Bewes, the former star of the sitcom The Likely Lads, of leaving her vulnerable to another attack.

"You may remember there was a terrifying incident at my home in the year 2000," she told Mandrake at the Cartier Style et Luxe lunch at the Goodwood Festival of Speed. "There was an attempted murder. That was why the security was there. I felt very vulnerable."

Bewes said his pet cat was injured by razor wire that Harrison had installed at the top of the fence surrounding her 100-room Victorian house and its extensive parkland at her £25 million estate near Henley. He protested to the local council and aired the issue in the media.

The wife of the former Beatle has now conceded defeat and removed the wire, but told me: "If this man had come and talked to me I would have explained that. Why didn't he make contact with me instead of talking to the newspapers? Now, thanks to him, everyone knows I have no protection, so where does that leave me?"